Alistair McGowan reveals why he can't impersonate Aston Villa boss

HIS impression of the Wolverhampton Wanderers manager is so good that Mick McCarthy has said: “He does me, better than me!”

HIS impression of the Wolverhampton Wanderers manager is so good that Mick McCarthy has said: “He does me, better than me!”

But Alistair McGowan has revealed he will NOT be adding Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish to his repertoire.

“I couldn’t find anyone in the world I look less like,” he says of the ginger-haired Scot. “It would be very difficult to pull that off.”

Alistair is returning to TV next year in a new comedy quiz, You Cannot Be Serious, and we can expect to see him reprise one of his favourite characters in Mick McCarthy.

Especially after the manager said: “Alistair McGowan is the only one who does me better than me. He is quality.”

He will host the ITV1 series, produced by Harry Hill, which will mix impressions with topical sports stories.

“I can’t wait to start filming You Cannot Be Serious. It will be a chance to do some of my favourite old characters and learn some new ones,” says the comic actor, who was born and brought up in Evesham, Worcestershire.

“Mick McCarthy is a major character in British football and has a great sense of humour.

“I did one of my best ever sketches on The Big Impression during the 2002 World Cup. I played Jack Charlton and Ray Stubbs in the studio in London talking to Mick McCarthy in Japan.

“There was a satellite delay of three seconds, so it was like the Two Ronnies sketch where he goes on Mastermind and answers the previous question.

“It was a nightmare to film, trying to remember who I was and where we were in the sketch, but it came out really well and is one of the best things I’ve ever done.”

Alistair, 46, is returning to the Midlands next month to perform live.

He is bringing Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance to Birmingham Symphony Hall on New Year’s Day, when he will be playing the Pirate King in a one-off show.

Among the cast is Alistair’s girlfriend, opera singer Charlotte Page, who plays Mabel.

“I’ve nicknamed it Two Bench Productions, because we just arrive with two benches, no costumes or set. It’s the piece stripped bare, just slightly more than a concert performance.

“I hope it helps people listen to the wonderful words and not be too distracted by other things.”

He doesn’t even mind performing on New Year’s Day, as he’s not planning a big night out the evening before.

“I’ve never been a huge one for New Year’s Eve,” admits Alistair, who has acted in Bleak House, Skins and Mayo, as well as joining Judi Dench in Stratford-upon-Avon for the RSC’s Merry Wives of Windsor and playing Henry Higgins in Pygmalion.

“I’ve never been a drinker, I don’t drink much at all. So I shall not miss spending the evening watching other people get drunk.

“If you’re a glass half empty person, you just think it’s another year gone, so why are we celebrating that? I just prefer to ignore the whole thing and go to bed early.

“It’s nice to work on New Year’s Day as it’s one of the most depressing days of the year. It’s often a very empty and grey day, so if you’re at a loss as to what to do, come to see Pirates!”

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In the second part of our look back on an extraordinary year we chart the topsy-turvy season for Blues, Alex McLeish’s controversial appointment at Villa and the riots which erupted in Birmingham and many other UK cities.